We
have excerpted portions of the following letter, which was written to us by
someone who recently came into possession of The Slaughter of Terrified Beasts,
a book that was written by Rev. J.R. Hyland, the editor of Humane Religion.

Dear Rev. Hyland,

I have a copy of your book The Slaughter of Terrified Beasts, which I bought
when I saw it listed in the PETA catalog...I am a Christian. I made my vows of
Confirmation at age 13 in the Lutheran Church. I am now 76 years old. It wasn't
until about 1974 that I became a vegetarian. At that time we moved to a farm
community outside of Omaha, Nebraska. Since our daughter was lactose intolerant
and a farmer neighbor of ours had goats, I asked if I could buy goats milk for
her. That was when I got an insight as to what goes on in "factory" farming. As
I went each week to buy the goats milk, I saw how veal is made. I also saw the
baby calf born and that it was (almost) immediately taken from the mother cow
and placed in a narrow stall (crate) to spend the six months of its life in
semi-darkness. The mother cow bawled continuously for five days and five nights
after the calf was taken from her. It was Spring and our windows were open. Such
a pitiful sound. I finally went to the farmer and said, "I feel so sorry for
that baby calf crying for its mother." He said, "It's the mother bawling for her
baby." I [also] saw a mother pig chained by one leg on a concrete slab. This is
where she spent her entire life, artificially inseminated, and pumping out
piglets. She could not turn or stand anymore. It was after all this that I
decided I would not eat animals anymore.....

Your sister in Christ, Dorothy Ruge.

POSTSCRIPT

In her letter, Mrs. Ruge went on to describe the lack of interest, or even
comment, on the part of those with whom she tried to share the message of God's
concern and love for animals, that is found in Slaughter/Beasts. But whether
they were part of church community, or outside it, people did not want to
discuss this subject with her.

To breed and rear creatures for gratuitous
destruction is not simply human perversity but a reversal of divine
purpose

Animals are not made for human use and pleasure,
but for God’s glory.

The Revd. Andrew
Linzey, Anglican Priest, author of
“Christianity and the Rights of Animals.”

When HR wrote Mrs. Ruge, asking for permission to print excerpts from her
letter, we also asked if she would be more comfortable having it printed
anonymously. We loved her reply:

"You may use my name if you wish. It takes courage to stand up for
animal rights, especially when surrounded by carnivores, just as it takes
courage to stand up for Jesus Christ, when surrounded by non-believers." #